Thursday, 28 June 2012

The Government must re-examine rent allowance cuts - Brady

The Government’s approach to the cut in rent allowance is ill thoughtout, and has created a great deal of fear and anxiety among those inreceipt of the payment. That’s according to Wicklow Sinn Féin councillor John Brady who is calling on the Government to re-examine the decision, made in the 2012 Budget, to cut the rent supplement by €22m leading tonew rent limits being set.

Cllr Brady said “Although this cut was announced in Budget 2012, it isonly now that families and individuals are receiving their reviewletters informing them of these new limits. This has left manyfamilies extremely worried about their future. Many of them found ithard to find a landlord who would accept rent allowance in the firstinstance, and will find it very difficult to renegotiate their rentdownwards.”

Cllr Brady continued “Some are facing the prospect of having to move,and quite often it can be difficult for a tenant to find suitableaccommodation in the same neighbourhood, meaning moving further fromfriends and family, or perhaps moving a child to a different school.It is entirely unfair of the Government to expect such a vulnerablecategory of tenants to renegotiate these rents downwards themselves,when they are in such a poor bargaining position.”

“I believe that the Government need to go to landlords, and negotiatewith them directly on this issue, to ensure that families are notforced from their homes. Sinn Féin has also consistently argued forthe use of the tens of thousands of NAMA properties which arecurrently unused to be used to house those on the housing list, andthose getting rent allowance. However in Wicklow we don't have largevolumes of ghost estates or large quantities of empty housing, so i amcalling on the Minister for Housing Jan O'Sullivan to change thegovernment policy of not building any more social housing. We havelarge tracts of land reserved and in recent years councils in Wicklowhave spent nearly €10m purchasing land in Bray and Greystones. Onesite in Bray cost €6.1million alone and is now a haven for antisocialbehaviour and will probably never be used for the purpose it waspurchased which was to try tackle the massive housing list." continuedCllr Brady

Cllr Brady concluded “The Government’s response to this issue has beenmeagre. They have even failed to provide any support and informationas to how to go about asking their landlords for a reduction in theirrent. There are 98,000 people in receipt of Rent Allowance in Ireland,and this includes all from single parents, to families, to theelderly, however, they are rarely in a position to play hard ball onrent. The Government’s number one priority as regards RentalAccommodation should be ensuring that none of those currently relyingon it will be evicted on account of this decision.”